The Ketogenic Diet For Epilepsy

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-15 09:49

The ketogenic diet for epilepsy

Content:

• The essence of the ketogenic diet
• Contraindications
• Menu for the week
• Recipes for the ketogenic diet
• Results, reviews

According to many doctors who specialize in the treatment of epilepsy, the ketogenic diet is very effective. Epilepsy is a disease that is accompanied by characteristic seizures: seizures, mood swings, disturbances of consciousness, hallucinations, manifestations of aggression, panic attacks, delirium, etc.

Complex therapy will help to significantly improve the condition of patients, as well as to stop epileptic seizures, which includes: physiotherapeutic procedures, medicines, a ketogenic diet.

The essence of the ketogenic diet

Currently, in the treatment of epilepsy, specialists use a ketogenic diet, which is contraindicated in infants under 1 year old. Due to very strict dietary restrictions, this diet should be prescribed by the attending physician, after a comprehensive examination of the patient.

Prolonged restriction of nutrients from various foods can significantly reduce the frequency of epileptic seizures. In some cases, the attacks of the disease completely disappear, and patients can lead a full life. When prescribing a diet to patients, the attending physician must constantly monitor their condition and take action if any side effects or disorders are detected. Its main principle is fasting. The first three are allowed to drink drinking water without gas.

Patients are strictly forbidden to drink mineral water, as it contains various trace elements and gases. While following the ketogenic diet, patients are strongly advised to reduce physical activity. The attending physician can prescribe the patient to bed rest, if he sees all the reasons for this. Starting from the fourth day of the hunger strike, patients need to gradually introduce solid food into their daily diet.

The daily norm of food should be divided into small portions (4 times less than always), which can be eaten in 5-6 meals. Patients should learn how to independently calculate the amount of nutrients consumed, as this is very important for their body and overall well-being. They should focus on the following indicators: 4 parts of fat / 1 part of protein / 1 part of carbohydrates. During a ketogenic diet lasting 3 days, patients should completely exclude the following foods from their diet: beets, potatoes, carrots, cereals, wheat bread, pasta.

During the treatment of epilepsy in children, whose age ranges from 1 to 12 years old, specialists use a slightly modified ketogenic diet. It differs from the standard dietary food in the following way: young patients should consume special fatty cocktails made from milk. Such a milk drink has a special composition, which professional nutritionists are working on to develop.

Patients can choose how they will consume this drink: in the form of ice cream or in the form of a cocktail. The main task of nutritionists who have developed a milk drink is to accustom the child's body to regular consumption of foods high in fat. This is due to the fact that fatty foods have an antiepileptic effect. The attending physician individually for each young patient determines the list of foods that can be eaten. The ketogenic diet is able not only to restore lost forms, but also to help the body fight serious diseases, in particular epilepsy.

Contraindications

Before starting a ketogenic diet, a patient should consult their doctor, as there are a number of contraindications for it:

• diseases of the kidneys, liver (a large amount of fat can negatively affect the work of these organs);
• diseases of the cardiovascular system;
• cerebrovascular and lipid diseases.

Every patient on a ketogenic diet should keep their own food diary. In it, he will be able to note the frequency and duration of epileptic seizures. The duration of the diet can only be determined by the attending physician, after studying the patient's nutrition diary.

Some patients may develop side effects:

• decreased activity;
• stool disturbance;
• decrease in blood acidity;
• for diabetics, such a diet can end fatally.

For the category of patients for whom a ketogenic diet is contraindicated, it is recommended to abandon indigestible, spicy, salty and smoked foods. They are also advised to limit their fluid intake.

Menu for the week

During a ketogenic diet, patients can eat the following foods: turkey and chicken, eggs, dairy and dairy products, sea fish, in particular tuna, salmon, herring.

Entering the diet begins with a 3-day fast, during which patients are allowed to drink clean water. On the 4th day, patients should gradually introduce dietary approved foods into their diet.

Menu for the week of the ketogenic diet:

1,2,3 days:

Water.

4th day:

• chicken eggs (boiled) 2 pcs., butter 1 tsp., coffee or tea with cream (high fat content);
• boiled sausages 2 pcs., mayonnaise 1.5 tsp, 1 quarter tomato;
• fat cottage cheese with the addition of sour cream 150 gr.;
• boiled chicken breast 1 pc., 10 g butter, steamed green beans, olive oil 2 tbsp. l., tea or coffee with cream.

5th day

• A piece of butter, with the addition of 1-2 hard-boiled eggs;
• turkey meat 150 gr., vegetable salad (cucumber and onions), olive oil for dressing;
• cabbage soup with fat sour cream, pork fried with tomatoes, tea with cream;
• scrambled eggs, with brisket, fresh cucumber and a slice of bread.

6th day

• 4 boiled quail eggs, coffee with cream;
• boiled beef 150 gr.;
• boiled turkey fillet, tomatoes dressed with mayonnaise;
• a slice of boiled lean fish, boiled asparagus beans (half a serving).

Between meals, patients can have snacks: yogurt, fermented baked milk, cottage cheese, kefir. During a ketogenic diet, patients burn fat tissue, and no effect on muscle mass is exerted. Nowadays, many bodybuilding athletes have begun to use this principle of nutrition, thanks to which they are always full of energy and strength.

Recipes for the ketogenic diet

Egg omelet with bacon

Ingredients:

• eggs (chicken) - 2 pcs.;
• pork bacon (lean) - 2 pieces;
• butter - 1 tablespoon;
• cream (low-fat) - 100 gr;
• salt, pepper - to taste.

Method of preparation: cut bacon into small strips and fry in a hot skillet for 1-2 minutes on each side. After that, pre-beaten eggs with cream (with the addition of salt and black pepper), pour in the bacon. The omelet should be cooked for 10-15 minutes over low heat.

Scrambled eggs with pieces of ham:

Ingredients:

• chicken eggs - 2 pcs.;
• ham - 50 gr.;
• processed cheese - 50 gr.;
• vegetable oil - 1 tbsp. the spoon;
• greens, spices to taste.

Method of preparation: First of all, you need to fry the ham, then add the eggs. Put cheese on an almost finished dish and fry the eggs over low heat, for 3 minutes. Sprinkle with herbs before serving.

Grilled vegetables:

Ingredients:

• onions - 2 pcs.;
• Bulgarian pepper - 200 gr.;
• olives (olives) - 1 tbsp. the spoon;
• olive oil - 1-2 tbsp. spoons;
• capers - 1 tsp;
• spices, vinegar to taste.

Method of preparation: Cut vegetables into rings and marinate in a special sauce (vinegar, spices, capers, olives). Place on a wire rack and bake until stripes are formed.

Baked turnips:

Ingredients:

• turnip - 400 gr.;
• cheese (hard varieties) - 150 gr.;
• chicken eggs - 1 pc.;
• butter - 1 tbsp. l.;
• sour cream - 1 or 2 tbsp. l.;
• spices, salt to taste.

Method of preparation: Peeled turnips must be poured with cold water and cooked for 1 hour. When the turnips are ready, cool and mix with sour cream and spices with a kitchen assistant. Add the egg and cheese to the resulting homogeneous mass, then beat for a few more minutes in a blender. Put the resulting mixture in a mold and bake in the oven until golden brown. The oven temperature should be in the 170 ° C range. Cool before serving and sprinkle with chopped herbs.

On the subject: Treatment of epilepsy - a list of effective remedies and drugs

Results, reviews and recommendations of doctors on ketogenic nutrition

The use of the ketogenic dietary program in the treatment of epilepsy is due to the fact that patients do not experience discomfort throughout the entire period of fasting. Their hunger dulls, despite the limited intake of calories in the body. When entering a ketogenic diet in patients, the pancreas begins to produce insulin in smaller quantities. As a result, the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases is reduced.

Currently, the ketogenic diet has begun to be used in the treatment of cancer. According to many experts who left their feedback on the ketogenic diet, 70% of patients noticed significant improvements in the general condition of the body, including a decrease in the number of seizures, and 30% of epileptics did not feel any effect. When prescribing a diet to patients of a young age, cases of complete healing from this most serious ailment were observed. Many people use the ketogenic diet to correct their weight. Just six days of dietary nutrition allows you to get rid of 5 extra pounds.

When using a diet for weight loss, experts recommend not limiting yourself in fluids, so that toxins are quickly excreted from the body, and its cells are renewed at an accelerated rate. Before excluding certain foods from their diet, any person should consult their attending physician or professional nutritionist. The human body is able to independently produce the necessary amount of nutrients from fat deposits for the full functioning of the brain.

Everyone knows that the liver contains a certain amount of glycogen (glucose), which is enough for no more than 1 day. Having used up this reserve, the body begins to start a process (ketosis), in which fats begin to be burned (the pancreas processes fat cells into keto bodies, which are capable of replacing glucose in their composition).

After ketones penetrate into the brain of a person suffering from epilepsy, seizure relief is observed, since they have an anticonvulsant effect.

Over the years, various studies of epilepsy have been carried out, the result of which suggests that there is a direct connection between the patient's well-being and the nutrition system used by him. Patients who took part in the trials and were on a ketogenic diet were found to be dehydrated, which was achieved by eliminating carbohydrates from the diet.

The menu for patients should be calculated by specialists, since it is extremely important for young epileptics to have fatty milkshakes or ice cream in their daily diet. Such foods are capable of replacing essential carbohydrates, so they should be eaten in sufficient quantities. Adult patients do not need to eat foods that replace carbohydrates, as they should be completely excluded from the diet during the diet.

The author of the article: Kuzmina Vera Valerievna | Endocrinologist, nutritionist

Education: Diploma of the Russian State Medical University named after NI Pirogov with a degree in General Medicine (2004). Residency at Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry, diploma in Endocrinology (2006).